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Long-laggard retailers found themselves in the rare role of boosting stocks yesterday amid a surprisingly robust earnings report from Bed, Bath & Beyond. Housing stocks were also up on similarly positive results from homebuilder Lennar Corp.

The S&P 500 index gained 2.1 percent, or 19.32 points, the most since June 1, to 920.26, while the Dow Jones industrial average added 172.54 points, or 2.1 percent, to 8,472.40. The Nasdaq composite also rose 2.1 percent, or 37.20, to 1,829.54.

JC Penney, the third-biggest US department-store chain, added 6 percent to $28.20. The shares were raised to “overweight” at JPMorgan Chase, which said the company will beat analysts’ earnings estimates on better-than-expected sales and lower costs.

“There’s a sense that the consumer is starting to get better,” said Uri Landesman, who manages $2.5 billion at ING Investment Management Inc. “There’s still uncertainty about the pace of recovery and the slope of the line. People are changing their minds every day.”

Equities extended gains after the Treasury sold $27 billion in securities at a lower-than-forecast yield and the Federal Reserve curtailed its intervention into financial markets.